Anderson v. Intel Corporation Investment Policy Committee
In brief
- Where it stands
- Awaiting Decision
Decision likely Jan–Mar 2027
- What it’s about
- This case concerns whether former Intel retirement-plan participants adequately alleged that the plan’s fiduciaries violated ERISA’s duty of prudence by keeping proprietary investment funds that allegedly performed poorly after Intel added hedge-fund and private-equity investments.
- What's at stake
- The Court’s answer could shape how easily workers can bring claims over investment choices in 401(k)-style retirement plans. For example, a worker challenging a poorly performing plan fund may need to compare it with a specific similar fund.
Summary: written with AI from the case record.
What it's about
The Court will decide whether the Ninth Circuit could require plaintiffs in such cases to identify a meaningful comparison benchmark at the pleading stage.
The case concerns how detailed a lawsuit must be at the start when workers accuse retirement-plan managers of failing to invest prudently.
Question presented
Whether, for claims predicated on fund underperformance, pleading that an ERISA fiduciary failed to use the requisite "care, skill, prudence, or diligence" under the circumstances and thus breached ERISA's duty of prudence when investing plan assets requires alleging a "meaningful benchmark"?
What happens next
Likely Jan–Mar 2027
The Court heard argument on October 6, 2026. Nearly all opinions are released by the end of the term in late June or early July 2027.
At argument
Oral argument is scheduled for October 6, 2026. The parties will address whether ERISA underperformance claims require allegations of a meaningful benchmark.
Docket activity
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More questions
- What is at stake in Anderson v. Intel?
- The Court will decide whether workers alleging imprudent retirement-plan investments must identify a meaningful benchmark for a fund’s poor performance.
- Who could be affected by the Intel case?
- Workers in ERISA-covered workplace retirement plans and the committees that manage those plans could be affected by the pleading standard.
- When is oral argument in Anderson v. Intel?
- Oral argument is scheduled for October 6, 2026. A decision usually follows later in the same Court term.
Sources
Primary materials plus reporting. Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.